Gloucester Rugby secure services of trio of England U20s squad

Gloucester Rugby can today announce that three of England's current U20s Junior World Championship squad have signed contracts with the club.

The squad are currently in New Zealand preparing to defend their title in Friday's final against South Africa, having topped their pool with an unbeaten record and seeing off the challenge of Ireland in Sunday's semi final.

Billy Burns has put pen to paper on a new deal at the club, and the fly half is joined by two of his current England U20s team mates.

Scrum half Callum Braley, the U20s skipper in New Zealand, moves up the M5 from Bristol Rugby while speedy winger Henry Purdy has moved to Gloucester from Leicester Tigers.

The capture of both Braley and Purdy, as well as the retention of Burns, shows the commitment at the club to developing young English talent.

Burns made his first team debut for the Cherry and Whites in the LV= Cup in 2011 and has since made 8 appearances, including a start at fly half against Worcester Warriors in the Aviva Premiership on the final day of last season.

For much of 2013-14, Burns played a pivotal role in helping Hartpury RFC claim promotion to National League One and proves the ongoing successful link between Hartpury College and Gloucester Rugby.

A try scorer in last season's LV= Cup clash at Scarlets, the hugely talented pivot has spent the summer with England U20s as they attempt to defend their Junior World Championship title in New Zealand.

Meanwhile, joining the club is an exciting new addition in scrum half Callum Braley from Championship side Bristol Rugby.

Braley, who made his first team debut for Bristol at the age of 17, is a past Hartpury College student and has been connected with the Bristol Rugby Academy set up before making the switch to Kingsholm.

Part of the England U20s squad that won the Junior World Championships in France in 2013, Braley is currently captaining the squad in New Zealand this summer.

At Hartpury, Braley helped the College win the AASE League in 2011 and will benefit greatly from working with senior squad scrum halves Greig Laidlaw and Dan Robson.

With two of the regular starting England Under 20s half backs at the club, both Burns and Braley will be looking to develop their half back partnership.

The third member of the Junior World Championship squad that will be donning Cherry and White next season is winger Henry Purdy.

Gloucester Rugby moved swiftly to acquire the services of the winger following the completion of his contract with the Leicester Tigers.

Purdy made his first team debut for the Welford Road club against Saracens in November 2012 having started his rugby career at London Wasps.

Born in Oxford, Purdy represented Oxfordshire U16 and U18s as well as England U18s before being selected for the England U20 squad this summer in New Zealand.

For most of the 2013-14 season, Purdy was dual registered with Championship club Nottingham.

And, of course, a fourth member of the current England U20 squad on duty in New Zealand, Ross Moriarty, is already under contract and set to move up to the first team squad next season.

A Junior World Championship winner in 2013, the powerful back rower featured several times for the Gloucester first team last season as well as playing his part in Hartpury's successful league campaign.

Ed Slater took part in his first training session with his new team-mates on Tuesday morning, and told GRTV afterwards that a few familiar faces will help him settle in quickly ahead of an exciting season.

GRTV caught up with Gloucester Rugby's new signing Jason Woodward during his first week of preseason at the club. The new face spoke of his delight to be at the club, and in familiar surroundings of Hartpury College

Stephen Thomas, a regular at Gloucester Rugby's Walking Rugby sessions is in line for a top prize after being nominated for Premiership Rugby's BREAKTHRU Achiever of the Year award. He admitted to GRTV to being shocked and humbled by the news.

After a long build-up, Gloucester's Ross Moriarty made his first appearance in a British & Irish Lions shirt on Saturday. Speaking after the game, he admitted that it was good to finally get into action.

Lewis Ludlow, who has enjoyed a fine personal season, admitted to massive disappointment after the loss to Stade Francais but looked to draw positives before thanking the Gloucester fans for their support.

Friday evening will see Matt Scott return to Murrayfield, a venue he is very familiar with. Speaking ahead of the final, he admitted that he's incredibly excited about the European Rugby Challenge Cup Final against Stade Francais.